"Raining pretty hard out there..." I said.
The drops made a steady staccato beat on the roof of the truck as we rode inside, four of us as well as the driver—myself, three Shinra soldiers, and Sephiroth. We were in an old pickup with an enclosed bed, better to avoid standing out and drawing attention to ourselves on the way to our destination, wherever that was.
As we drove along, I was the only one of the group on my feet, gazing ahead of us at the rain pouring against the front windshield as the truck's wipers desperately tried to keep up. Sephiroth and two of the troopers sat in the back—the troopers on one side and our commander on the other. I turned away from the rain when I noticed that one of the soldiers wasn't looking so good as he hunched over in his seat.
I went over to him. "You okay?"
"I'm fine," he insisted, waving me off.
The trooper was young, about my age, but I couldn't see much of his face under the metal helmet—they hid everything but the mouth. He did look a bit green, though, and his blue uniform was spotted with sweat in a few places. At first I thought he was just nervous about the mission we were on, but after a moment, I understood.
"Motion sickness, eh?" I said. "Wish I could relate, but I've never had it myself. Still, hang in there, alright?"
He nodded weakly. "Yeah, I will. Thanks..."
I patted him on the shoulder, then looked at the other trooper. "How about you? Holding up alright so far?"
He didn't answer, but I didn't mind. I didn't know him as well as the first guy, so I let the matter drop and started pacing eagerly up and down the length of the truck bed. My skin tingled with excitement as I stopped and did a few squats while thinking about the mission. Although I didn't know too much about it or even where we were going, it didn't matter as long as it was dangerous and unusual. I really wanted to see Sephiroth in action—the legendary war heroup close.
I looked at him for a moment. If he'd been standing, he would've had to duck his head because he was over six feet tall. Sephiroth's long strands of silver hair hung down past the waist of his jet black cloak. Like the rest of his clothes—pants, tunic, boots, and gloves—it was made out of tough black leather. The only parts of his gear that were different were the steel buckles and his gray shoulder guards. His pale green eyes glowed brightly with mako, but they were cold, like chips of ice.
"Sit down," he ordered.
I half-turned to show him the two colored orbs embedded in the slots on my massive sword, Buster. "Got some new materia before we left, and I can't wait to try it out! Ice and Lightning."
He sighed. "Just like a kid..."
"Just ready to kick a little ass out there, that's all," I said. "So anyway, you gonna tell us what this job's all about?"
"This 'job' isn't your typical mission..." Sephiroth began.
I pumped my fist. "Good!"
He raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?"
"I joined SOLDIER to be just like you," I explained. "But by the time I made it to First Class, Wutai had surrendered and the war was over. So were my big hopes of being a hero. That's why I always sign up whenever there's a dangerous mission. To prove myself. So, what about you? What's your reason for being out here, Sephiroth?"
"Didn't you want a briefing?" he reminded me.
I nodded. "Oh, yeah. Sure."
Sephiroth went on, his frigid gaze never leaving me. "We've received reports of a mako reactor malfunctioning, creating vicious creatures that have been prowling the area. Our mission is twofold: first, we'll find and dispose of as many of these monsters as we can. Second, we'll inspect the reactor, locate the problem, and neutralize it. This may take several days, perhaps even a week. But it will be done."
"Understood, but... monsters? Where?" I asked.
"Nibelheim," he answered.
My mouth fell open. "What? That's where I'm from. I grew up there. Little speck of a town in the mountains."
I hadn't been home in years, but I could still remember the chill that always seemed to hang in the air, how quiet it often was, and how small. The night I'd made my promise to Tifa atop the water tower underneath all those stars. I hoped she still remembered me—I'd been gone for a long time, after all, and most of the guys who left Nibelheim never came back. It'd be good to see everyone again, though I knew I probably wouldn't get much time for visits and sightseeing.
Sephiroth looked away. "A hometown..."
Before I could ask him what was on his mind, the truck screeched to a halt so abruptly I had to grab onto the side to stay on my feet. A heavy jolt from the front suddenly shook the whole thing as something slammed into it from outside and nearly knocked us over. The two troopers had to brace themselves to keep from sliding off their seats, but Sephiroth hadn't even budged. He was implacable and utterly calm.
"What's the situation?" he asked, glancing toward the front.
The driver gulped. "Something really strange just crashed into us, sir! It was big and had wings, but that's all I sawbefore it flew past us. I don't think it went very far, though. It's out there..."
Sephiroth stood up. "It seems we've found our monster."
"M-Monster?" the driver shivered.
"Let's go," Sephiroth ordered, looking at us.
I nodded and opened the back door, then quickly hopped outside, my boots splashing in the mud as the rain poured down around me. The two soldiers came next, and Sephiroth followed, quickly taking the lead as we walked down the road. The troopers both had their rifles ready, but what stood before us was way more than they could possibly handle. I reached back and pulled out Buster while Sephiroth slowly drew his own weapon, a long, slender katana called the Masamune.
Almost as legendary as Sephiroth himself, the blade was said to be so sharp it could cut through anything, and I couldn't wait to see him use it. I hoped Buster would someday become just as famous as the Masamune, and I hefted it in both hands, eager to put it to use, as we approached the monstrous thing that had attacked the truck.
It was a dragon, armored in dark green scales, its wings spread wide and its tail snapping at us like a whip. It must've been about fifty feet tall as itloomed over us and roared, its mouth full of sharp teeth like spears. Long, narrow black horns and a pair of piercing blue eyes made the thing even more menacing than it already was.
I braced myself as I saw the dragon inhale, and a second later, a line of blazing fire shot out at us. Acting on instinct, I dove aside, pulling one of the troopers—the one who'd had motion sickness—along with me and out of danger while the other one rolled away with a startled shout in the opposite direction. The dragon's flaming breath scorched the place where we'd been standing less than a second later, the heat exploding behind me as I shielded my friend from the blast.
Sephiroth, though, hadn't moved. He stood alone in the middle of the fire, completely unharmed, his chilly green eyes focused on the dragon as he held the Masamune ready. And then he struck, rushing in and slicing the katana first one way and then the next, again and again so fast that I could barely follow it. He was just a rapid blur of motion, a whirlwind of death with his silver hair flying out behind him.
As I gaped at Sephiroth in awe, I realized that the rain didn't seem to touch him at all, as if he repelled it somehow. And with every sweep and slice, the Masamune resonated with a low, eerie hum at the peak of each slashing blow. Sephiroth cut through the rain as much as the dragon, and neither one could stand in his way.
— — — — — — —
I looked at everyone as I finished telling them about the battle with the dragon, wanting to drive home just how powerful Sephiroth really was. "No matter what stories you might've heard about him, Sephiroth is way, way stronger and more dangerous in reality. It's unreal just how powerful he is. I can't even describe it."
"Whoa..." Wedge breathed. "He's really like that? He took out that huge dragon all by himself?"
I nodded. "Without even breaking a sweat."
Biggs whistled. "Damn..."
"You're not kidding," Marissa agreed. "I've heard a little about him, but... I can't imagine what it was like actually seeing him do something like that. It must've been incredible..."
"It was," I said.
Aerith leaned forward a little as she sat between Lena and Marissa on the sofa. "So where do you come in, Cloud?"
"Me?" I blinked. "I was amazed at how Sephiroth fought."
I could still see in my mind how fast he'd moved, slashing, cutting, and dodging as if he'd been carried along by the wind itself—or as if he were the wind. A living hurricane slicing apart anything or anyone that stood in his way. He was more a force of nature than a man, a spinning cyclone of destruction that nothing could survive. But somehow, I had. And I still didn't know how or why.
"So how we s'posed to beat him?" Barret asked.
I shrugged. "I don't know yet. We'll figure that out as we go. It's not gonna be easy, though. Not even close."
Lena frowned. "But you will beat him, won't you?"
"Count on it," I swore.
"Right," she smiled. "So what happened next, Cloud? You've got us all on the edge of our seats, you know!"
Aerith giggled. "Sure do!"
"Well, there wasn't much left after the battle," I said. "So we just got back inside the truck and drove on. Since we'd already crossed the river by then, it didn't take long to reach Nibelheim..."
— — — — — — —
"How does it feel?" Sephiroth asked.
I stopped, surprised and a little confused by the unexpected question as we stood for a moment outside the gates of Nibelheim. He was a short distance ahead of me, gazing past the town at the icy, jagged peaks of the mountains rising up beyond it like the teeth of a gigantic monster. What was on his mind? He seemed strangelydistracted.
I scratched my head. "What do you mean?"
"You haven't been to your hometown in a long time, right?" he asked quietly, without turning around.
"Yeah," I nodded. "It's been a few years."
Two, actually, since I'd left home after making my promise to Tifa at the water tower that night and telling everyone in town that I was gonna join SOLDIER. Two years since I'd passed through this same gate to start my long journey to Midgar. The town was oddly quiet, but it didn't seem all that much different than I remembered.
Now Sephiroth did turn to face me. "So how does it feel? I don't have a hometown, so... I wouldn't really know."
"But what about your parents?" I wondered.
"My mother was Jenova," he explained. "She died not very long after giving birth to me. And as for my father..."
He trailed off into a fit of laughter, but it was cold, utterly humorless, and I didn't know what he found so darkly amusing. I couldn't remember ever seeing him laugh before—he was always so grim and serious—and I didn't have a clue what to make of it. So I just stood there for a while and watched until he finally composed himself.
Then he shrugged. "It doesn't really matter."
After a moment, Sephiroth turned away again but didn't move quite yet. He wasn't reallyhimself, hadn't been ever since we'd arrived here. He seemed almost preoccupied, and his pale green eyes wandered back up to the mountains as if he were searching for something. The reactor, maybe? It was why we were here, but... I wasn't so sure.
Just behind me, the two soldiers stood quietly at attention. The truck was parked nearby, and the driver was waiting there for now, doing what he could to fix the dents the dragon had left in it. We were lucky it hadn't been more than that. In the meantime, I went over to one of the troopers, the one who'd had motion sickness earlier.
He seemed better now, but still a little nervous. What was his name? I tried to remember but couldn't. We were friends, had been for a while. I knew he wanted to join SOLDIER someday, so I always tried to look out for him and show him the ropes. But why couldn't I remember his name? It didn't make any sense. I'd known it once.
Maybe it was just the passage of time. This was all several years ago, after all. But I can't quite believe that. I feel like I should know it, like it's hanging just outside my mental reach. The idea that I simply forgot what my friend's name was really bothersme.
I patted his shoulder. "You holding up alright?"
"Yeah," he said. "But I'd be careful if I were you. You'll get in trouble if you keep wandering around like that."
"I'll be fine," I assured him.
Sephiroth motioned us. "Let's get moving. And watch yourselves. The mako smell is very strong here."
We followed Sephiroth as he headed quietly through the gate. As he'd said, the acrid stench of the mako hung heavily in the air, stronger than I remembered. My throat burned and my eyes watered as I made my way slowly into town, the two soldiers close behind me. None of us knew then the hellish nightmare this mission would become, or that Nibelheim itself and everyone in it would be gone in just a few days.
— — — — — — —
"Now wait jus' a damn minute!" Barret blinked. "Sephiroth's mom's name... Jenova. Ain't that the headless freak we saw back in the Shinra Buildin'? That killed all'a them people?"
I nodded. "Right. That's her."
Marissa frowned. "Headless? I don't understand."
"That thing's not human, is it?" Jessie shivered. "It can't be. Which would have to mean that Sephiroth..."
I looked at her. "Yeah. I'll explain soon."
She was on the right track, of course, but I hadn't even gotten close to that point in the story yet. And I wasn't looking forward to it, either. Jessie sat beside me at Elmyra's table, unusually serious as she absently rubbed her wounded arm with her good hand. Tifa, over on the stairs, was strangely quiet as well, had been ever since I'd begun talking about what had happened in Nibelheim. Her and Jessie both, actually. I didn't know what it meant or what to make of it.
"But how the hell's that possible?" Barret sputtered.
Tifa sighed. "Let's just hear what Cloud has to say, alright? We can save the questions for afterward."
He grimaced. "I know, Tifa, but I was only—"
"Save it, okay?" Jessie said. "We need to listen carefully to what he's telling us. Every little detail could be important to understanding what happened then and what's going on now."
"Awright, ladies," he shrugged.
Tifa turned to me. "Okay, Cloud. Go on."
Aerith looked at us. "And the childhood friends reunite! It must've been a wonderful moment for you guys."
"Yeah..." Tifa said.
I agreed. "Sure was. Though it didn't happen right away. We had to get settled in first, establish patrols, that sort of thing. Routine military stuff. But Tifa really surprised me later."
"Did you visit your family, too?" Jessie wondered.
I nodded. "Yeah, but... it doesn't really have a whole lot to do with what happened. Dunno if I should go into it. It'd probably be better if I just focused on Sephiroth and what he did."
She smiled. "It'll be fine, Cloud. I just wanna learn more about you, where you came from, that kinda thing."
"Me too!" Aerith added. "It's been a long time, right?"
It had, of course. "Five years..."
Barret chuckled. "Gotta admit, I'm a little curious 'bout it as well. I wanna hear it, merc. In fact, I think we all do."
"Got that right!" Lena agreed.
"My interest is piqued," Marissa chimed in.
Jessie slid her good hand over mine. "Bet you never knew you were so good at captivating an audience, did ya?"
I shook my head. "Not really."
"So, will you tell us?" she asked, her eyes on mine.
"Well..." I decided. "I suppose."
Jessie's face lit up in the first real show of warmth I'd seen from her since I'd started sharing my story. "Thanks, Cloud. Bet you were really cute as a kid, too. Completely adorable!"
"I, uh..." I blinked.
Aerith giggled. "Oh, I'm sure he was!"
I swallowed. "Anyway... let's just move on. I'll get to the part about my family in a bit. And I stopped by Tifa's house, too. Might as well go ahead and tell you guys about it."
"You went into my house?" Tifa wondered.
"Just for a minute," I answered. "I thought you might be home, and I wanted to see you again and catch up."
She gave me a faint smile. "Oh, I see. Thanks."
"Sure," I told her.
"So, back to the story now?" Wedge asked. "Don't leave us hanging, bro! You'd just gotten into town, right?"
I nodded. "Yeah. I remember it was pretty quiet when we got there. Seemed like almost everyone was staying in their homes. Scared of the monsters, probably. Or maybe of us..."
— — — — — — —
The town didn't look much different than I remembered. Lots of dirt everywhere, and the old water tower still stood in the middle of the main square just like it always had. Surrounding it was a cluster of homes and shops with slanted roofs of red shingles and dark wooden beams framing white walls withlights glowing in the windows.
Beyond it loomed the old Shinra Mansion, as creepy and foreboding as ever. It had been abandoned for years and hadn't been inhabited since before I was born. The weedy and overgrown front yard was enclosed by a tall, rusted iron fence, and past the large open clearing nearby stretched the winding path leading up into the mountains. A mako reactor was up there on Mt. Nibel—our destination. But it was getting late now, and we wouldn't be going anywhere until tomorrow.
Sephiroth looked at us. "Post a lookout and then get some rest. We'll only need one, so take it in shifts. As for the rest of you, be sure to turn in early—we leave at dawn for the reactor."
I nodded. "Understood."
He started to head toward the inn, then turned back to me. "Oh, and you may visit your family and friends."
Then he was gone. I had one of the soldiers take the first watch while the other one went into the inn to rest. Then, since my house was nearby, just on the other side of the town square, I decided to stop by and see my mom for a while. So I headed around the water tower to the other side of the square and walked up to the front door.
Not sure you could really call us a family. It was just my mom and I. My father died when I was only a few years old. Some sort of accident up in the mountains, or so I'd heard. I don't remember too much about him, only his face, stern but kind. Mom had lived by herself in this house ever since I'd left for Midgar, and she was still there when I slowly went inside, a little nervous without really knowing why.
Mom was a vibrant woman, same as always. Easygoing and quick to smile. Her hair was blond like mine, pulled back into a bun, and she was wearing a plain orangedress with a white apron tied over it. Wasn't hard for me to find her—the tantalizing aroma of cooking food led me straight to the kitchen, where she was standing at the stove minding a pan as she hummed contentedly to herself. She was fine when I saw her, but... a few days later, she died. Along with so many others.
"Uh..." I began.
She turned around, her eyes widening. "Cloud!? Oh, welcome home! It's been far too long since I've seen you."
It had. "Hi, Mom."
"I've missed you so much," she said, crossing the room to wrap me in a tight hug. Then she stepped away and smiled. "Now come let me take a look at you! Is this a SOLDIER uniform? It looks so dashing on you! Oh, and you're just in time for dinner."
"Smells good," I said, my stomach rumbling.
Mom chuckled. "Thank you. You'll stay, won't you?"
I nodded. "Yeah. If it's okay..."
"Of course!" she embraced me again. "This is your home, Cloud, and it always will be. You know that. Now just go and relax while I finish the cooking, alright? It won't be too long."
So I did, heading upstairs to my room while Mom went back to work on dinner. When I got there, I leaned Buster against the wall and looked around for a moment. It was just the same as when I'd left—the bed with its teal blue comforter, white pillows, and sheets, neatly made, the dresser in the corner with the lamp on top, and even the big poster of Sephiroth I kept on my wall. It was all still there.
With a sigh, I laid down on my bed, tired from the long drive. It had taken two weeks to get here from Midgar with only a few hours rest each day, and most of that time had been spent in the truck. Riding across the ocean from Junon aboard one of those big cargo ships had been about the only break in that routine. I was just laying there, thinking about all that had happened so far and the mission ahead of us, when Mom opened the door and walked inside, still beaming.
She looked me over again. "My, look how much you've grown. You're so handsome! You must be quite a hit with women. I'll bet there's a lot of girlschasing after you, never leaving you alone."
"Not really," I sighed.
"Oh, you're just being modest, Cloud," Mom said. "But you know, the big city's full of temptations. I worry about you. And I'd feel a lot better if you found yourself a nice, pretty girlfriend to keep you out of trouble and take care of you. And love you like I do."
I shrugged. "I'm fine."
She went on as if she hadn't heard me. "I'd say an older girl would be best for you. Not too much older, mind you. Just a few years at the most. Someone fun but also mature enough to look after you and make certain you know when you're being a silly goose."
"Not interested," I said.
"Of course not," Mom teased. "But you will be when that special girl comes along. In the meantime, dinner's ready, so come downstairs, wash your hands, and have a seat, alright?"
I stoodup. "Okay. And, um... thanks, Mom."
She nodded as we went back to the kitchen. "You're welcome, Cloud. Are you eating right, by the way?"
"The company takes care of me," I told her.
"Is that so?" Mom raised an eyebrow. "Then I'd guess you're probably not. I worry about you. And I know that you can't cook. So I think it'd be best if your girlfriend can. She doesn't have to be a wizard at it as long as she keeps you well fed. But while you're here in town, you could definitely use a good home-cooked meal or two."
And on it went, Mom fretting and worrying over me like she always had. But the food was really good. When I'd finished eating, I stayed with her for a little while longer before I left, promising to come back and visit her again before I had to return to Midgar. The sun was lowerin the sky when I went outside, and dusk was approaching. But there was one other place that I wanted to go to before I headed back to the inn for the night, one other person I wanted to see if I could.
Tifa lived next door to me, and I went over and knocked. There was no answer, and I wondered if she just hadn't heard me. I tried again with the same result, so I reached out and tried the knob, and it turned easily. Nibelheim was a small enough town that everyone knew each other, and locking up wasn't usually necessary. When I gave the door a light push, it swung open with hardly a sound.
I took a tentative step inside. "Hello? Tifa?"
Silence greeted me, broken only by the ticking of a grandfather clock in one corner of the family room. In another corner stood a pantry made of polished wood, and a smallmahoganytable rested againstthe wall on the other side of the room near the base of the stairs. The hardwood floor was clean, and a small rug lay on it in front of the open doorway leading into the kitchen and dining room. I peeked through it for just a moment, but nobody was in there, either.
I'd thought Tifa might be home with it getting late outside, but now I wasn't so sure. I walked up the dark wooden stairs, each slow step loud in my ears. There were two doors on the second floor, each leading to one of the bedrooms. Ahead of me was her father's room, but he wasn't in there. I was glad for that, since he didn't like me much, and he'd have thrown a fit if he'd seen me here. I could hardly believe I was doing this myself. The room on myleft was Tifa's, and I went inside.
She wasn't there. A tall wooden dresser stood against the wall across from me, and next to it was her desk. A large double window with a pair of soft brown curtains filled the front of the room, and around the cornerfrom the door were Tifa's bed and an upright piano. Curious, I went over and played a few chords. I was never into it as much as she was, but I do know how to read music and find the different notes. Both my mom and hers had been friends when I was a kid, so I'd had a handful of lessons. I think that might've been how Tifa and I first met.
Anyway, once the music had faded, I left her house and went outside again. It was nearly dark now, so I hurried over to the inn. The old man all of us kids in town had always called Gramps was inside, standing just behind the counter. He looked up, his eyebrows white and bushy, as soon as I came in and walked over to see him.
"Inn's all booked up by Shinra for the night," he started. Then his eyes widened when he recognized me. "Cloud?"
I nodded. "Yeah, it's me."
Gramps chuckled. "I thought that was you. It must've been two years now since you left here. Seems you've really moved up in the world, being under Sephiroth's command. Well done."
"Thanks," I said. "Where is he, by the way?"
Gramps pointed to the steps with his thumb. "Upstairs. Haven't seen him come down once since he got here earlier."
I'd figured as much. "How are things around town?"
"Not so good lately. We've always had a few monsters come down to bother us from the mountains now and then, but this past year has been really bad. More attacks than I care to remember."
"Any idea why it's worse?" I asked.
He shrugged. "Dunno. Although, now that you mention it, things did start going downhill once the reactor was finished. It wasn't so bad when it was still being built, but after it was completed, we started seeing more monsters around here. Not much else besides that, though. Don't get a lot ofexcitement in a small town like this."
"Yeah," I agreed. "There isn't much here anymore."
"Within a few years of that reactor getting built, all the trees on that mountain just withered away," Gramps went on. "And now it's just lots of barren rock and dirt. Hardly even any grass, either. Dunno if the reactor was worth it or not, but what can you do? Anyway, bottom line is, we've gotta get rid of the monsters to have some peace around here. So let's just say thatI'm very glad to see you all here."
Taking my leave of him, I started to head toward the stairs, but then I saw another man standing nearby. He was older as well, though not as much as Gramps. His gray hair was tied back in a short tail, and he also had a matching beard. But this guy was no geezer. He was a fighter, with a sleeveless brown vest that showed off his muscular arms, and he wore a pair of fingerless leather gloves on his large hands. A dark red cape hung from his shoulders, and he wore loose beige pants that were easy to move around in and tough leather boots on his feet.
His blue eyes found me at once. "So... has Shinra come to dispose of the monsters? Or do you have another purpose?"
I replied with a question of my own. "And who are you?"
"Zangan, an instructor of martial arts," he answered, not deterred by my directness. "I train many children and young adults around the world in the way of the fist. Including Tifa, a girl from this very town. I've spent the last two years teaching her what I know."
My eyes widened. "Did you say Tifa? She's your student?"
He smiled with pride. "My very best. Tifa has good sense and is eager to learn. She'll become a powerful fighter one day, a force to be reckoned with. I'm guessing you know her, then?"
"We're friends," I answered.
"Ah, very good," Zangan said. "And by the way, I'd be very interested in seeing some Shinra fighting techniques. Please feel free to use anything of mine as well if you see something you like."
I nodded. "Thanks."
He flexed a fist. "You're welcome, young man. And good luck to you on your mission tomorrow. May it go well."
I walked away and hurried upstairs. Sephiroth was alone in the hall outside our rooms, gazing quietly out through a large window at the line of mountains rising to the north just past the town. He didn't look at me or even move when I approached him. He just stood there and stared out the window, his eyes fixed on the view and on Mt. Nibel in particular. I'd never seen Sephiroth so troubled before.
"What are you looking at out there?" I wondered.
"This scenery," he answered. "This place... it feels familiar somehow. I can't explain it. But enough about that. I've hired a guide to the reactor, a local girl who knows this area well. She's young, however. I hope she's as reliable as she claims. Did you see her?"
I shook my head. "No. Must've just missed her, I guess."
"Well, you'll meet her tomorrow, then. You'd better get some sleep in the meantime. We're having an early start."
"Right," I agreed. "Guess I should at that. Goodnight."
Sephiroth didn't answer, but I wasn't surprised. He'd never been very sociable, preferring to keep to himself, and usually didn't say much. I just went across the hall and into one of the rooms that had been reserved for us, leaned my sword against the wall, and took off my boots. Then I laid down on the bed, even more tired now than I'd been earlier, and tried to fall asleep. But although I was excited about the mission, I couldn't shake the strange sense of foreboding I felt. Tomorrow would see the start of our journey. And the beginning of the nightmare.